Page 11 of The Stand-In Boyfriend

Is he right? Am I really the problem here? Is there something wrong with me? Something that caused Jack to cheat?

“Noah?” Evie’s question stops me from falling further down the rabbit hole. There is interest in her voice that wasn’t there only seconds ago.

“Yes, Noah. Don’t act like you don’t know it.”

As soon as I’m in her room, I throw myself face first onto her bed, my body bouncing off the mattress as I groan loudly.

“Wanna tell me what happened?”

The mattress dips down when she sits next to me.

I turn my head to the side to face her. “I’m sorry for being such a bitch to you earlier, Eves.”

Evie waves me off, a runaway strand of her blonde hair falling in her face. She blows it away, but it only moves a tiny bit to the side, while the rest of her hair is piled on top of her head in a messy bun. “It’s already forgiven. So…” She pokes me in the side. “What happened with Noah?”

I roll to my back and my shirt skims up, revealing a stripe of my belly, but I don’t bother pulling it down. It’ll get cold soon enough, and I plan to use every warm day left to dress in skirts and dresses.

“That’s what I’d like to know too! You guys left, and I went to drop off my books, and then these girls were talking shit a few lockers down. The next thing I know,bam, he’s walking toward me and kissing me in the middle of the school hallway! Seriously, what is wrong with these guys? Isn’t there anybody normal left in this godforsaken town?” I huff, not one to hide my exasperation.

“Was it any good?” Evie asks suddenly, her amber eyes shining brightly behind her glasses.

“What?” I frown at her, completely thrown off by her question.

“The kiss. Was it any good?”

“Didn’t you hear a word of what I just said?” I sit upright and cross my arms over my chest, glaring at her.

She waves me off once again. “I heard all the important things. Now tell me.”

“What, you wanna compare notes now?” I lift my brow in question. The question sounds teasing, but there is no escaping the pang of hurt I feel. Am I ever going to be enough?

“God, no!” Her astonishment is almost palpable, eyes growing wide in surprise. “Why would you say that?”

“Because you dated him before dating Liam?”

“We both know Noah was…” She pushes her glasses up her nose, trying to come up with the right words. “Well, never right for me. Kissing him was like kissing a brother.”

Evie shudders at the words.

There was nothing brotherly about the way he kissed me.

The thought comes out of nowhere, surprising the hell out of me. Shaking my head, I push it back.

“He’s most definitely not right for me either, so I don’t see the point of this conversation. Besides, I decided I’m giving up on boys.”

“You?” Evie’s brows shot up her forehead. “Giving up on boys? Since when?”

“Since my last boyfriend cheated on me with one of my teammates, and I was kissed by your ex-hookup because he felt pity for me.”

I don’t need another man in my life for whom I won’t be good enough.

Evie’s hand lands on my knee, giving it a firm squeeze. “How can you know that?”

“I’m pretty sure I’m not the only one who heard those girls talking shit about me behind my back. Literally. They weren’t even trying to be quiet.”

Her face turns sour. She puts her hand on my thigh, giving it a reassuring squeeze. “It’ll be all right, something will happen soon and drive away their attention from you.”

I want to believe her, but… “I’m not really sure.”

---